Hieam k wickes



H; N. .WIOKESL Gar-Coupling.

NO. 224,754 Pat ented Feb. 17 1880..

' WITNESSES: INVENTOB ma i/P zmwy/ p BY A ATTORNEYS UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HIRAM N. WIOKES, F GRAND GORGE, ASSIGNOR TO ZOPHER W. MORE, OF

I CAMDEN, NEW YORK.

CAR-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 224,754, dated February 17, 1880.

' Application filed December 3, 1877.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HIRAM N. WIcKES, of Grand Gorge, in the county of Delaware and State of New York, have inveuted'a new and Improved Gar-()oupling, of which the following is a specification.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a vertical longitudinal section of my improved car-coupling, and Fig. 2 is atop view of the same with one head in horizontal section on line m as, Fig. 1. Similar letters of reference indicate correspondin g parts.

This invention has reference to an improved I5 car-coupling that couples in reliable and au- 10mm manner without requiring any one to step in between the cars, the link being held in horizontaL position so as to secure its entrance into the opposite draw-head; and the invention consists of a draw-head with internal cavity having upwardlydnclined rear por- @tion and central guide-rib, along which a centrally-grooved roller is carried by the link.

The roller sustains the coupling-pin, the latterdropping into the link when the roller is carried back. The roller bears on the rear part of the link and holds it, in connection with the pin, in horizontal position for coupling, 0 Referring to the drawings, A represents a a qdraw-head of the usual shape, witha curved and tapering mouth and internal cavity B. The rear part of} the cavityB is extended back of the couplingpin O in upwardly-inclined 5 manner, and provided with a central rib, a, at the inclined rear wall of the enlarged cavity. The centerrib, a, serves to guide a cylindri' cal roller, 1), that fits, by an annular center groove, 1). on the guide-rib a. The central 4o. groove of the roller is, however, of less width thanthe diameter of the pin 0, so that the roller may sustain the samein raised position. The roller 0 moves forward when the pin is raised, and is retained by the contracted front portion of the cavity in such a position below 5 the upper pinhole as'to support the pin B in I raised position, as indicated in Fig. 1.

In coupling, the enteringlink E strikes, the roller, carries the same back into the rear cavity, and drops the pin for coupling the link. 5o The link strikes against the center rib, .a, and is thereby prevented from entering fartherinto the draw-head and from injuring the roller by the concussion.

When it is desired to couple the draw-heads the linkis held in horizontal position by the pin and by the roller bearing on the rear end of the link, as shown in Fig. 1; so as to secure thereby the reliable entrance of the link into the approaching draw-head, even in case the draw heads to be coupled are of different heights.

The essential features of the coupling are the grooved roller and the inclined guiderib of the rear cavity of the draw-head.

I am aware that it is not new to use a roll in an automatic coupling; but the pin has been found, especially after its hole in the draw-head had become worn, to take a slightly oblique or laterally-inclined position on roll, so as to drop on the side of link, and thus allow the cars to uncouple as soon as they started. 'By my mode of receiving and guiding the pin in a median groove of roll it is carried down directly into theopen space of link. Hence What claim as new 'is In an automatic car-coupler, the combination of the periphorally-grooved roller with the inclined rib, the coupling-pin, and recessed drawhead, substantially as described, to op- 8o crate as specified.

HIRAM N. WICKES. 

